Mass Effect
by Queen Nan
Summary: In the Traverse a synthetic threat rises up to threaten the human race while a single human is granted the rank of Council Spectre, defender and hand of the Citadel Council. Can Rachel Shepard defeat a rogue Spectre while discovering the true threat that looms in dark space? Glee Mass Effect AU, Faberry
1. Chapter 1

**A.N: Another AU. This one is a retelling of the Mass Effect Series with Glee characters in the principle roles, note that none of the alien characters will be replaced, that means Wrex stays Wrex, Liara stays blue, Tali remains Quarian, and Garrus remains the best Turian bro out there. Also while this will follow the games closely, things have been changed to fit with the Glee characters, and I will add scenes as I see fit to fill in the wholes of the game and flesh out the series further.  
**

**Characters and their in game counterparts  
**

**Captain William Schuster- Captain David Anderson  
**

**Commander Rachel Shepard (Berry)- Commander Jane Shepard  
**

**Lieutenant Finn Hudson- Lieutenant Kaiden Alenko**

**Dr. Emma Pillsbury- Dr. Chakwas  
**

**Flight Lieutenant Noah "Puck" Puckerman- Flight Lieutenant Jeff "Joker" Moreau  
**

**Gunnery Chief Quinn Fabray- Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams  
**

* * *

**Mass Effect **

**Glee Style**

**-Captain William Schuster-**

The Alliance brass were all the same. Back and forth, up and down, pissing and moaning about this candidate and that candidate. Schue was all for a human Spectre, someone who's loyalty would remain first and foremost with Humanity, but politics irritated the hell out of the career military man.

The Council, made up of the Turian, Asari, and Salarian bureaucrats who helmed the Allied Alien races of the Citadel, had been stonewalling humanity for years. Most politicians and the top Alliance brass had been pushing for a seat on the council since humanity had joined the Citadel races. Schue was in the minority in his private thinking.

He agreed that it was too soon for humanity to have a seat on the council, there were races that had been part of the citadel for many more years than humans and yet they had no seat so it didn't seem right for humans to become so powerful so quickly. A Spectre was a good bridge though. A human hand of the council would show that humans had it in them to cooperate with the council and could be team players. It was the next best thing to a seat on the council and it would certainly shut up the politicians, for a few months at least.

So here he was, listening as every Alliance Admiral, Captain, and politician threw names out. He was pretty sure Admiral Sylvester, if the smirk was any indication, was throwing out made up names.

"What about Shepard?"

Schue tensed as his least favorite person in the Galaxy spoke.

Ambassador Figgins was the human ambassador at the Citadel and a giant jackass who played politics better than most Asari, which was saying something.

The name was actually one Schue could get behind though which surprised him. Rachel Shepard was a Commander with the Alliance marines and his own Executive Officer.

He growled internally as the gathered brass turned to him for the rundown on his XO.

He cleared his throat and spoke as impassively as possible, "Commander Rachel Shepard, born on the colony of Mindor and was one of a few to survive the raid that destroyed the colony. She certainly proved herself during the Blitz."

One of the Admirals muttered rudely, "Yeah, she's a big damn hero."

Schue clamped down on the instinctual urge to snap back.

Figgins scowled at the Admiral that had spoke and replied, "There is no doubting she's a hero, but is that the kind of person humanity needs defending the Galaxy?"

Schue couldn't hold his tongue this time, "Shepard is the only kind of person that _can _defend the Galaxy."

Figgins was quiet for a long moment before he leveled a harsh look at the other men and women present and spoke directly to Schue, "Set it up Captain and I'll contact the council with our recommendation."

* * *

**-Commander Rachel Shepard-**

The small woman stood at parade rest on the bridge of the prototype Alliance frigate that had been very recently christened Normandy. The pilot, who had come with the ship, handled the bird like an extension of himself.

Next to her stood an unusual guest on an Alliance ship, a Turian Spectre by the name of Nihlus Krylk. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as his mandibles flared as he stared down at her pilot. A second later and his gaze was back on her. She shifted uncomfortably as the Spectre's eyes settled firmly on her. The damned Turian seemed to be around every corner, she couldn't sneeze without him being there to witness it. He was… Judgy… yeah, that was a good word. He was judging her, her ship, and now her pilot.

Noah "Puck" Puckerman announced to the Bridge at large, "We're through the relay. Drift at just under 4000 k."

The Turian grunted, "Good. Your Captain will be pleased."

The tall scaled alien turned on his heel and ghosted down the corridor from the Bridge to the navigator's station and past the Galaxy map. His red and black armored form disappeared as the pressurized doors hissed behind him.

Puck's voice was resentful, "I hate that guy."

Lieutenant Finn Hudson cocked his head and peered curiously at Puck, "Right… The guy gives you a compliment, so you hate him?"

Puck turned to scowl at Lt. Hudson, "He called me good. You remember to zip your suit after taking a piss, that's good. I managed to hit a set of coordinates the size of a postage stamp with a fucking Frigate. That's amazing." He was quiet for just a second and then he added, "Plus I don't like Spectres. What's he doing on this ship? Call me Paranoid but you don't send Spectres on what is supposed to be a simple shakedown run."

Finn scoffed, "You're paranoid!'

Rachel scowled down at the two men, "Both of you need to mind your mouths. It isn't our place to question why the council and the Alliance want the Turian on board."

The two men sank into their chairs just a bit and muttered in turn, "Yes Ma'am," And "Aye Commander."

The comm. chirped and the Captain's voice cut through the Bridge, "Shepard! Head back to the communications room."

Rachel snapped to attention even though her CO couldn't see her and replied curtly, "On my way sir."

Puck spoke up before the connection was lost, "Better watch out Captain, Nihlus was on his way."

The Captain's growl was heard a second later, "He's already here Puck."

The comm. cut out and the Bridge was silent until Rachel's hand shot out and connected with the back of Puck's skull, "Nice going Puckerman, now the Captain's angry."

Puck yelped and then grinned up at her, "Hell Ma'am, the Captain is always angry with me."

Finn rolled his eyes in amusement, "Maybe if you kept your mouth shut Puck?"

Rachel smiled to herself and turned from the Bridge and down the gunner corridor and smiled at Navigator Pressley when the older man snapped to attention. It had taken some time but the man had finally come to terms with the idea that his superior officer wasn't only a woman but a very young woman at that.

She nodded to the crewmen that were scattered about and was nearly out of the navigational area when Dr. Pillsbury raised a hand to stop her, "Commander, just the woman I was looking for."

Rachel came to a halt in front of the Doctor and the young Corporal at her side.

The doctor leveled a mothering gaze on the young man and demanded of the Commander, "Perhaps you can explain to Jenkins that shakedown run or not, he shouldn't be looking for a fight."

Jenkins puffed up after saluting belatedly, "Scuttlebutt is that the Spectre is on board for some secret mission. I hope it's true, maybe I'll finally get to make a name for myself."

Rachel replied firmly, "You're young Corporal. Do your job and the brass will notice you in time."

The corporal replied more abruptly and freely than he should have to a commanding officer, "Easy for you to say Ma'am, you proved yourself during the Blitz and you aren't that much older than me."

Rachel didn't reply and she noticed the second Jenkins realized he had broken the unspoken rule on board the Normandy. Don't talk about the Blitz. Not to each other, and definitely not to Shepard. Her jaw locked and she strode past him as he cursed himself.

As the doors to the Communications room hissed open she growled to herself. She was so tired of hearing about the Blitz. Everywhere she went people called her a hero. She was promoted well past where a person her age should be and had even been awarded the Star of Terra, all for being a mur-

"Commander! Just in time." Rachel winced. The Turian was smiling at her from the comm. relay.

She nodded to him and asked as civilly as she was able, "Where is Captain Schuster?"

The Turian shrugged but Rachel caught the flaring of his mandibles, equivalent to a jaw being clenched, "He'll be here Commander."

Rachel decided not to press, this… man? Well this Turian was a Spectre and he deserved respect if nothing else, despite the fact that he had decided to stalk her.

They were silent for a time before Nihlus spoke, "This colony we're headed to, Eden Prime? I've heard it's a paradise."

Rachel looked at him curiously and couldn't resist the small amount of sarcasm that left her mouth, "So the name would suggest. I wouldn't know personally though. I've never been there."

The Turian waved a hand, "But you've heard of it. Eden Prime is supposed to be Humanity's shinning example that they can build and maintain successful colonies in the Traverse."

Rachel waited for him to make his point.

The Turian leveled a piercing stare and continued ominously, "But is humanity ready for that? There is… a lot that can go wrong."

Rachel's biotics flared involuntarily, they always did when an alien was being threatening, "Is that some sort of threat Spectre?"

Nihlus took a step back and held up his hand, "You misunderstand me Commander, Humanity is a young species and yet you've plunged your fingers into more than a few galactic pies. It hasn't made you very popular as a race."

Rachel wrestled her biotics under control and replied with no small measure of distaste, "And as a Turian, I'm sure you'd know all about hating Humans."

Nihlus let his mandibles flare out, "Human's are bullies Commander, even a Human centralist such as you must understand that."

Rachel crossed her arms and snarled, "And Turians hate that there is another bully in the playground." She quieted before snapping again, "And I'm not a Human centralist."

The Turian actually stepped towards her this time, "Really?" The prominent scales over he left eye rose dramatically, "I wonder how the Batarians would feel about that assertion."

Rachel felt a wash of shame crash over her as she abruptly turned away from the Turian. She clenched her eyes shut and clamped down hard on her lip to prevent any tears from falling. She'd be damned if she let this scaly bastard see her cry.

She got control of herself faster than ever before and turned back to the Spectre. She was surprised to see that his eyes held shame in them now.

His voice was quiet, "I apologize Commander. That was uncalled form. What you did at Elysium is to be praised, not mocked."

Rachel ground out, "I don't want praise for Elysium. I never have and I never will."

Nihlus cocked his head but didn't reply. He was peering at Rachel as if he hadn't been watching her for the better part of a week.

"I see you two are getting along." Rachel rolled her eyes in her head as Captain Schuster strolled into the Comm. Room.

Nihlus smiled politely, "I was just getting to know your young Commander Captain."

Schue nodded good naturedly, "I'm glad." He turned to address Rachel, "Now I bet you've figured out that this is no ordinary shakedown run."

Rachel straightened up and declared, "I figured as much. What exactly is the mission?"

The Captain crossed his arms, "A Prothean Beacon was uncovered at Eden Prime and the Council has asked for the Alliance's cooperation to retrieve it."

Rachel perked up, "And is that why a council Spectre is on board?"

Nihlus took over, "My presence here serves two purposes Commander. I am on board to investigate the Beacon but I am also here to watch you."

Rachel reared back, "Why?"

The Captain smiled gently at the younger woman, "The council is considering allowing a human into the Spectres and your name is on the short list," He laughed, "Hell your name is the short list."

Rachel stared at her Captain, "You… you approve of this Captain?"

Schue nodded, "It would be good for Humanity and there isn't a better candidate in the Alliance."

The comm. blared and Puck's voice squawked through the room, "Captain I'm picking up a video distress signal from Eden Prime!"

Schue tensed and ordered briskly, "Bring up the video feed Puck."

The feed crackled on screen and it was chaos. Synthetics poured out from a ship in the far corner, Geth? What the hell were Geth doing this far into the Traverse? Instinctively Rachel's hand went to the pistol holstered on her hip as she watched the death and destruction. Suddenly, as the screams of the colonist filled her ears and the horrors of Mindor and Elysium began to overtake her mind, a body filled the video screen. A marine if her armor was any thing to go by, white with pink detailing of all colors. A smile quirked across Rachel's lips against her will as she stared at the female marine. The marine yelled into the camera feed as she hefted her assault rifle, 'This is alliance colony Eden Prime. We are under attack; I repeat we are under attack by an army of synthetics. Ground side marines will hold them for as long as possible but we are outnumbered!'

Rachel was struck by the marine's eyes as she turned to glance at the camera feed. Even through the helmet visor the eyes were startling in their intensity. They were hazel and fierce as the marine stated that the situation was hopeless. A second later and a deafening blast reverberated through the speakers and the feed was lost.

As Rachel turned back to the Captain for her orders she was hit with a wave of profound sadness. They might get to Eden Prime in time to retrieve the Prothean Beacon but it would almost certainly be too late for the fierce eyed marine.

Captain Schuster barked an order through his own comm. link, "Puck, full burn for Eden Prime. We've got to do what we can to lend aide to the colonists and the marines that are planet side!"

Nihlus cracked his neck and offered his own advice, "I don't know how many marines you have on board but a small strike team can move quickly and quietly through the colony better than a large squad of marines."

The Captain nodded and addressed Shepard, "I know you have questions but for now we need to secure the beacon and help defend the colony. Tell Hudson and Jenkins to suit up. They'll be going down with you and Nihlus."

Rachel nodded and saluted before turning and growling into her comm. link, "Hudson! Jenkins! We've been given orders to suit up for an assault at Eden Prime. Meet me at the elevator on the double."

"Aye Commander!" Was heard from Hudson and she watched as the large man charged from his place on the Bridge to her side. Jenkins was still milling outside the Comm. Room and leapt to attention and was on her heels in a heartbeat. The three marines hurried down the stairs to the crew quarters and into the elevator.

* * *

**-Lt. Finn Hudson-**

Finn adjusted the shotgun on his back and eyed his friend as she strapped another grenade to her side. He wanted to ask if she would be ok, he wanted to rail against the Captain for sending Shepard to another sacked colony when she still had nightmares about the last one. He wasn't sure he'd get the sound of her screaming out of his head anytime soon.

She didn't seem to be nervous or scared though. Rather she seemed very determined to tear through the Geth that had dared to attack a human colony while she was near by to stop it. Her hands went to her ear and Finn realized that the younger woman was adjusting her biotic amp. He really should do the same if they were going to be facing synthetics. He winced as he dialed up the power output on his amp just as Shepard had done. He hated his L2 implants and the side effects that came with the older technology.

At one time he had even resented Shepard and her L4 implants but he had seen what she could do with the old ones and he didn't begrudge her the power or the control boost now. She was gifted in biotics in an almost inhuman way and she certainly deserved the best. He just wished his head didn't hurt so much when he used his implants.

Jenkins was actually humming in excitement next to him as the younger man equipped his assault rifle even though they were still on board the Normandy.

The Captain entered the drop bay and the three marines stood straight as Nihlus pulled a pistol free.

Schue deferred to Nihlus in this instance, "What's the plan Spectre?"

The Turian cocked his gun and replied tersely, "Two teams. We'll split up. I move faster on my own so your three marines will bring up my back." He dropped from the open hatch and the Finn watched as the Turian tucked and rolled before springing to his feet and running towards the colony outskirts with his gun drawn.

The Captain sighed at the completely lack of focus the plan had and told his marines, "Nihlus will be counting on you three."

Shepard spoke with conviction, "He can count on us Captain."

The Captain nodded curtly, "Your first priority is the beacon. Any survivors must come second to securing the Prothean technology.

Finn and Jenkins answered in the affirmative but Hudson saw the mutinous glint in Shepard's eyes. Survivors would never be last on Shepard's priority list.

The drop hatch opened again and Shepard took point and dropped through quickly. She was followed almost immediately by Hudson and then Jenkins. The three Marines settled into a crouch as the Normandy above them turned midair and then shot up and away as the thrusters engaged.

Together the three marines crept forward silently, with their guns at the ready.

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**Read and Review please**


	2. Chapter 2

**A.N: So there was a very blatant mistake in the previous chapter regarding the name of one of the characters in Mass Effect. Captain James Anderson does not exist, Captain David Anderson does. The mistake has been fixed.  
**

**A.N2: Rachel's rank as an N7 is brought up in this chapter, an N7 is a elite soldier that has been trained exhaustively and made through trial by fire, an N7 is not something one applies to be, you are instead invited. Rachel is one such soldier.  
**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

**-Commander Rachel Shepard- **

The three marines dropped from the frigate and landed in a tactical crouch as they waited for the ship to power off before they moved forward. As soon as they were clear overhead Rachel gave the signal to move forward. With Hudson and Jenkins on her heels she crept forward, remaining in her crouch so that she presented less of a target to anything on the planet that might want to kill her. It was times like these where she thanked God that she wasn't large or broad like Finn, who presented a fine target even in his crouch.

A buzz was heard over her comm. as Nihlus' dual toned voice sounded in her ear, "_It's bad down here Commander, Geth everywhere…_" There was a pause and then the rapid discharge of a weapon before the Turian's voice returned, "_Watch yourself Commander, I can't think of another human I could tolerate training. Nihlus out. _"

Rachel spoke shortly, "Acknowledged."

From behind her Jenkins piped up, "Ma'am?"

Rachel paused and turned to look at the young marine, "Corporal?"

He shifted his gun and nodded towards a path to their right that crested a small hill, "If we take that path it should get us to the colony Commander."

Rachel nodded, aware that Jenkins was the one with inside knowledge of the colony seeing as he'd grown up here, "Alright then, let's move out."

Finn and Jenkins replied quickly, "On your six Commander."

Rachel held tight to her modified pistol as she moved forward, still going slowly. She'd never encountered Geth before, so she was being far more cautious then if their enemy of the day were Batarians. She had no idea what sort of capabilities the Geth weapons had or if their shields would be effective against the technology employed by the race of synthetics.

They crested the hill and Rachel peeked out over the rocks she and her two marines had taken cover behind. She swore as she took in the path they'd have to take to move forward. Finally she held up a fist and pointed at Hudson before sweeping her hand forward. He inched out of cover before rolling to another rock and nodding to her from his new position.

Shepard turned to nod at Jenkins who smiled at her from behind his clear visor and then moved to follow Hudson. Instead of remaining crouched he stood, emboldened by Hudson's unmolested move forward.

His mistake was apparent as a loud whirring caught their attention and three drones burst from the tree cover up the hill in front of them and let out a burst of gunfire that ripped through Jenkins' shields in less than second. His light armor was punched full of holes in another heartbeat and Jenkins crumpled to the ground, riddled with holes.

Rachel flinched as she watched the young man stare out unseeingly through his shattered visor before she ordered, "Lift field Hudson, on my mark."

His reply was non-verbal, but out of the corner of her eye she could see his biotics flare as he readied himself.

She triggered her own biotics and barked, "Mark!"

Hudson popped from cover and hurled a pulsing mass effect field toward the three drones. Their small mass was no match for the sheer pulling force of the field which caused them to flip end over end. Hudson dropped back into cover even as Rachel shot up and shot off a biotic warp, trigging a biotic detonation that pulled, pushed, and crushed the drones until they fractured under the stress and exploded.

Rachel waited for a long moment, until she was certain that there were no more drones before she hurried to Jenkins side. She pressed a pair of hopeful fingers to the crease under his helmet and then sagged when she found no pulse. She reached up slowly and closed his staring eyes with a silent prayer.

Finn's hands balled into fists as he stared down at the young man, "He… poor kid, the damn drones tore right through his shields."

Rachel nodded, "Note that Lt. stay behind cover as much as possible."

Hudson nodded miserably, "He… he deserved better."

Rachel replied gently, "He did, and when this mess is over with we'll come back for him so we can give him a proper send off, but right now I need your head with me, alright Finn?"

He nodded and hefted his shotgun with a grim nod, "Aye Ma'am, I'm with you."

Together the two moved up the hill, darting from cover to cover with Rachel bringing up the front and taking the lead. She'd be damned if she was going to lose Finn like she'd just lost Jenkins. They encountered another pair of drones half way up the hill and made quick work of them, Rachel pumping her drone so full of soft lead that she nearly overloaded her heat sink, while a single blast from Finn's shot gun blew apart the other one.

She caught the concerned glance Finn tossed at her but ignored it, intent on pressing forward. She hated to picture the look on Nihlus' face when she reported that she'd lost one of her squad five minutes into the mission, moreover she hated the idea of Schue's face. She knew he'd been fond of Jenkins, much like he was fond of most of the marines that he had any contact with.

She clenched a fist over her pistol and waited until it had cooled down completely before creeping forward again. They encountered a couple hovering bulbous pods that were opaque in color and drifting along with the slight breeze that wafted through the hills. Rachel considered shooting one, just to see what might happen but she couldn't be sure if they were animals or plant matter and she made it a point not to kill animals just for the hell of it. She and Finn edged past the things and turned a corner, again staying in cover.

It was a good decision as a loud whirring was heard and Finn yelled out, "Enemy contact!"

Rachel took a deep breath and popped from cover for a fraction of a second, her eyes taking in the positions of the four drones before dropping back into cover. She turned to look at Finn and held up four fingers.

He nodded curtly and shifted his shotgun only to have her shake her head and make the hand signal telling him to change weapons. He folded his gun and strapped it to his lower back before taking the assault rifle from over his shoulder and pulling it to its full size.

Rachel waited up till he was ready and then popped back out of cover quicker than a viper and fired of five rounds into the nearest drone. She didn't even take time to aim, her natural awareness of the battle field making it so that she'd kept track of all four drones even from cover. Finn had seen her in action before and so he didn't gape at his N7 commander like a lot of wet behind the ear marines did when they first saw her shoot or use her biotics.

She crouch back down as the whirring of their guns charged and let off a heavy wave of bullets before it was still and silent again.

She ordered, "Lift field Lt! That worked last time."

He nodded and as soon as she shouted 'mark' he laid down a wide field that roped all of the remaining drones in its gravitational pull and lifted them higher than they already were.

Rachel deployed a warp, again trigging a biotic detonation and took a certain amount of pleasure in watching as the drones exploded into a million pieces. It was certainly different killing AIs or machines, she didn't have to worry about the small voice that chastised her every time she snuffed out a life, no matter how vile or horrible the life was. With machines it was simpler, she could blow them to hell with no worries about their families or if they had children, if maybe once upon a time they'd been someone who didn't deserve her bullet in their brains.

She offered Finn a small smile as he patted her back before they moved forward. As they came to the edge of the tree line a blast of gun fire was heard from down the hill. Rachel narrowed her eyes as she spotted a lone marine running at full speed away from what looked like four Geth troopers. The Geth were peppering the marine's heels even as they darted and rolled to avoid the hail of bullets. It was an impressive display of agility and it told Rachel why this particular marine was still alive. The marine pulled closer and Rachel let out a tiny gasp as she took in the marine's armor, the same white and pink as the fierce eyed woman on the vid screen. She watched in horror as the marine lost her footing and tumbled to the ground.

* * *

**-Gunnery Chief Quinn Fabray-**

Two of the Geth on her heels were more concerned with the colonist they had in their grasp as they turned away from her and pressed the man atop a small synthetic pyramid and waited. Quinn scrambled back even as she watched with a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach as the poor man let out a blood curdling scream as a spike of metal shot through him and hoisted him high into the air, leaving him lifeless and impaled high above the ground. Quinn rolled to her feet, she'd be damned if the Geth were going to do that to her, she'd put a bullet through her own brain before she let that happen. As soon as she had her feet under her she all but dove for an out cropping of rocks and took cover.

Quinn pressed her back against the rock and took a solid three or four deep breaths as she tried to get her heartbeat under control. She'd been running for what seemed like days, taking pot shots at the fucking flashlight headed Geth bastards and just trying to keep from getting shot like the rest of her squad.

She glanced up as she heard the sound of gravel shifting in front of her and brought her gun to bear, hoping it wasn't more Geth, instead she saw a tiny marine charging down the hill with a pistol aimed at the Geth behind her. She couldn't see the marine's face but the N7 patch and the red stripe on the black armor denoting the marine as one of a select few men and women with the brass ones to become elite gave Quinn her first shred of hope since the Geth had touched down and begun sacking the colony.

The tiny marine opened fire and Quinn let out an almost involuntary whoop as she hefted her own Sniper rifle and peaked out of cover and sighted one of the Geth. She got him right in his flashlight eye and then swung her rifle to another of the Geth. She shot it twice through the chest and watched as the tiny marine waved a hand through the air and sent one of the Geth hurtling through the air and smashing into the hill side. The tiny marine level her gun at the last Geth and opened fire as she strode forward, heedless of being shot herself. Quinn couldn't see her face, but she was almost certain the tiny marine was scowling with hatred as she unloaded round after round into the already non functional Geth.

Quinn straightened and did her best to get her breath back as the tiny marine turned towards her and barked, "Report!"

Quinn snapped to attention, "Aye Ma'am. They came out of nowhere Commander and leveled the groundside marines in less than an hour. Our shields are just this side of non-existent when it comes to their weapons."

The tiny marine bobbed her head, "We learned that the hard way too." Her shoulders seemed to relax just a bit and her voice softened, "Are you alright marine?"

Quinn nodded, "Yes ma'am, just winded, I've been playing hide and seek for the past hour, just trying to stay ahead of them."

The Commander cocked her head, "What's your name Chief?"

Quinn straightened her shoulders even further and prepared herself as she replied, "Quinn Fabray."

The N7 didn't react to her name save to hold out her own hand, "Rachel Shepard."

Quinn took the hand, a little surprised but not unhappy as she gazed down at Commander Shepard.

She blinked as the Commander turned and waved over a very large marine over, "Chief this is Lieutenant Finn Hudson, Lt. this is Gunnery Chief Quinn Fabray."

Hudson smiled at her through his visor and waved, "Hello Chief."

Shepard smiled at her as well and asked, "What's your unit Chief?"

Quinn replied promptly, "212 Commander."

The Commander nodded, "Alright Fabray, what happened exactly, and where was the Beacon last you saw it?"

Quinn winced and answered the second question first, "At the space port Commander, just up ahead. As for my squad we were patrolling the perimeter when they attacked, we tried to double back to the beacon to secure it but we walked right into an ambush. I…" She hung her head, "I got my entire squad killed."

The Commander shook her head curtly, "This wasn't your fault Chief, their weapons are sophisticated and AIs are usually quicker than organics, there wasn't anything you could do but survive, and you did."

Quinn cocked her head, "Ma'am?"

Shepard shrugged, "I don't believe in coincidences and we just lost a squad member, so what do you say Fabray, can you make it a little longer?"

Quinn hefted her gun and replied, "On your six Commander."

The Commander shifted her own pistol and spoke, "Fabray set your comm. to frequency tango six. I'll take point. No one else is getting shot today."

From behind Quinn Hudson spoke up, "Yes Commander," As she replied, "Aye Ma'am." She quickly tuned her comm. and fell into a crouch behind the diminutive N7.

As they crept up Quinn had to admire that the N7 wasn't simply barreling towards the Beacon, instead she was being cautious, keeping low to the ground and making sure that any enemy target would see her before it saw either Quinn or Hudson. She stopped dead nearly three hundred yards from where they'd started and readied her pistol before turning to them.

"Three Geth up ahead, Fabray get the one at two o'clock in your sights and take it out the minute I send a singularity at the other two, got it?"

Quinn nodded and Hudson spoke up, "And me?"

Shepard ordered curtly, "Cover us Lt."

Hudson nodded and readied his assault rifle as Quinn sighted the Geth that was set a bit apart from the other two and waited. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the Commander's biotics flare and then a singularity field was being flung at the other Geth. Quinn squeezed the trigger and blew a hole through the flashlight head.

Quinn swung her gun around, ready to take out the airborne Geth only to gape in surprise as the Commander fired off another biotic attack and caused what looked like a mini dark energy explosion, tearing the Geth apart.

The N7 nodded in satisfaction and muttered, "Much better than killing Batarians," before moving forward once again. They came into the space port and Quinn let out an angry growl as she took in the Beaconless area.

"It was here Commander, I swear it was."

The Commander turned and offered her a careless shrug, "I'm sure it was Chief, they probably moved it so they can transport it off planet."

Quinn nodded miserably anyway. Her squad had been slaughtered trying to make it back to the Beacon and for what?

Quinn's comm. crackled to life and an odd voice was suddenly talking in her ear, "_Commander?_"

Shepard spoke quietly, "Go ahead Nihlus."

"_There is a supply depot up ahead, I'm going to check it out and we can rendezvous there?"_

Shepard replied, "Understood," She turned to look at Quinn, "How far are we?"

Quinn replied into the comm. "ETA 6 minutes sir."

"_Copy that. See you all here. Nihlus out." _

Rachel nodded and offered Quinn a small smile, "I'm sure he appreciated the sir." She straightened and barked, "Let's move out, we'll pick up the pace, but that doesn't mean we get careless."

Quinn and Hudson nodded as they fell into a brisk jog behind the Commander.

They crested a hill and came to dead stop as the Commander let out a gasp, "It's more of those spike things…"

Quinn nodded as she took in the spikes and the people that were impaled on them. There were three bodies hanging limply on the Geth death devices, people she'd probably eaten with, joked with. She gripped her gun and then felt her stomach roll as one of the 'bodies' twitched and then convulsed further. As they moved Quinn acknowledge that while they were still human shaped the 'bodies' were all grey with what looked like blue cybernetics running through them.

Hudson exclaimed, "They're still alive!"

Rachel Shepard shook her head and hissed, "No. They aren't."

There was a low hum as the spikes began to descend and then the 'bodies' were lumbering off the spike pedestals and then they turned to fix glowing, inhuman eyes on the three marines.

The Commander yelled out, "They aren't human! Not anymore." She punctuated her words by firing at the grey form that was now sprinting towards them. Her bullets pierced the head of the 'body' but it kept coming.

Quinn didn't need any further proof that these things were people any more as she stored her sniper rifle and pulled out her assault rifle to open fire. She sprayed bullets as the Commander sent one of the 'bodies' flying with her biotics and Hudson blew one away with his shot gun. Once all three had been torn apart by the hail of bullets Quinn sagged.

She turned to look at Shepard and whispered, "I… I knew them, they were people once… I…"

The Commander turned sad eyes towards her and in a show of compassion that Quinn seldom saw from COs she reached out a hand and squeezed Quinn's, "I'm sorry Quinn."

Quinn nodded and peered into the little marine's eyes, "Thank you Commander."

The Commander shook her head, "Call me Rachel Chief."

Quinn's eyes widened before she replied, "Then… thank you Rachel."

Rachel smiled sadly before her whole stance changed, "Whatever Geth decided that doing this to humans was a great idea, I'd like a word with it."

Quinn nodded furiously, "I'll introduce you."

Rachel brandished her pistol and ordered, "Move out."

**TBC**

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	3. Chapter 3

**A.N: My Xbox died, and then every single Mass Effect saved game disappeared from my hard drive... I suspect foul play. Any how, I have new XBox, so, yay.**

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**Chapter 3**

**-Commander Rachel Shepard-**

She moved forward and then stalled when she took in the two shelters than had been erected just past where the… the husks had been impaled.

She turned and demanded, "Any chance of survivors Chief?"

Fabray shrugged helplessly, "No idea Ma'am, if anyone is in there, it's the scientists."

Rachel nodded shortly and strode forward, gaining a measure of hope when she saw the tell tale glow of an encrypted lock, she nodded to Hudson, "Break the lock Lt."

He moved forward and made short work of the very simple lock and for once Rachel was a little shamed at how little skill she had with tech. Sure, she could light up anything that moved with biotics, but ask her to break a lock or hack a computer and she'd be stuck for days. The door hissed open and Rachel stepped forward slowly.

She announced herself quietly, "Commander Rachel Shepard of the Alliance, state your presence."

She heard a small gasp as she entered the tiny dwelling and came face to face with a harried looking woman whose hands were clasped in benediction, "We're saved, thank the Maker!"

The man behind her let out hurried plea, "Close the door behind you damn it! Before those things come back."

Rachel held up a hand, "Don't worry, we'll protect you."

The woman nodded gratefully, "Thank you, I actually think we'll be ok now."

Fabray stepped up next to Shepard and spoke, "You're Dr. Warren aren't you? The one in charge of the excavation?" The doctor nodded and Fabray demanded, "Do you know what happened to the Beacon?"

Dr. Warren gave a curt nod as she reported, "It was moved to the space port this morning, for transfer off planet. Those things attacked here first, they must have thought it was here." She hung her head, "We managed to get to the shelters and lock the doors, the marines died saving us."

Rachel chanced a glance at Fabray, who was staring at the floor with a clenched jaw.

She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the man, "No one is safe! Humanity is at an end! Soon… soon nothing will remain save for corpses and ruin." He trailed off as he turned to stare at the wall, his eyelids blinking rapidly as he heaved in breath after breath.

Rachel's brow furrowed, "What's wrong with your assistant?"

Dr. Warren frowned as she turned to look at the man, "He… Manuel has a brilliant mind but he's always been unstable at best… genius and madness are often two sides to the same coin."

Manuel shot her an offended look as he hissed, "Madness? To see the future? To see nothing but destruction heading our way, to know there is no hope?" He stated firmly after a moment, "I am not mad… I am just the only sane one left."

Dr. Warren looked powerfully uncomfortable as she spoke, "I gave him another dose of his meds after the attack, hopefully they'll keep him calm until we can get off planet."

Rachel nodded and then moved on, "Anything you can tell me about the Beacon?"

The doctor ran a hand through her short red hair as she considered the question before speaking, "It's some sort of data module, from a galaxy-wide communications network. What's odd and remarkable is that it is so remarkably well preserved! It could be the greatest scientific discovery of our lifetime!" She waved an excited hand, "New tech! Groundbreaking medical advances! Who knows what kind of secrets are stored on the Beacon?"

Manuel chose the next second to speak up, "We've unlocked the heart of evil! Awakened a beast that will bring nothing but darkness! You mark my words!"

Dr. Warren's cheeks colored as she snapped, "Manuel, please! This isn't the time."

Rachel offered her a small smile before confirming, "And you are sure the Beacon was moved to the space port?"

The doctor nodded as Rachel turned to Fabray, "Fabray, take us to the spaceport." Her reply was cut off by the assistant.

"You can't stop it! Darkness is coming! Falling and will last for all eternity!"

Dr. Warren laid a soothing hand on his shoulder, "Hush Manuel, please go and lie down, rest until the meds kick in."

Rachel turned from the doctor and ordered over her shoulder, "Seal the door behind us, and we'll send a recovery team to your location ASAP."

The door hissed shut behind her and Rachel waited for the tell tale ping of the encryption being placed before she gripped her pistol and nodded to Hudson and Fabray. As they stepped into the open a loud roar was heard from over head causing all three of them to drop into crouches and bring their weapons to bare. Overhead a gigantic ship, unlike anything Rachel had ever seen before was rushed by overhead.

The thing was… massive, truly awesome in the strictest sense of the word. The black hull gave off a almost palpable sense of foreboding as did the red power pulses. It wasn't a ship that Rachel had ever seen and judging by the stunned looks on Hudson and Fabray's face, neither of them had seen anything like it before either. The struts of the ship arched down, giving the ship a bug-like appearance, if bugs were massive and menacing. It didn't have the traditional shape of a ship, making it seem wholly unpractical for planet-side landing, and it's sheer size would have made it nearly impossible to set it down in most areas. Except… something about the design made Rachel believe that setting it down somewhere wouldn't be too hard, if one was unconcerned with things like dead civilians or crushed buildings. Perhaps it was the aura of menace the ship gave off, but Rachel had the feeling that a ship like that landing was the last thing most people would ever see.

The ship powered off and Rachel shook off the chill that had settled in the pit of her stomach as she motioned Fabray and Hudson forward.

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**-Spectre Nihlus Krylk-**

The armored Turian took cover as he listened to the sound of another something moving just beyond his chosen cover. He'd taken cover before sighting what might be waiting for him but he was confident he could kill whatever it was before they got a shot off.

He clenched his gun closer to him and took a breath as his mandibles flared out, before spinning out of cover and bringing his rifle up to sight his target. He stalled when he took in who was waiting for him.

His dual toned voice rose at the end as he exclaimed, "Saren?"

The other Turian turned and his tone was… odd as he spoke, "Nihlus."

Nihlus drew himself, suddenly defensive of this older Spectre showing up on his mission, "This isn't your mission Saren. What are you doing here?" He held out a claw as he lowered his gun completely.

The older Turian, wish his ash grey scales, and an almost metallic sheen to his face replied softly, "The Council thought you could use some help on this one." He placed a hand on Nihlus' shoulder as he moved past him.

Nihlus wanted to be offended that the Council thought he needed help, but at the same time Saren's presence was comforting. Nihlus believed in Shepard's skills, but the tiny human was just that, a human, and when it came down to it, Nihlus would much rather have a Turian guarding his flank.

Nihlus turned fully away from Saren, gazing into the distance as he eyed the destruction that had been wrought on the formerly idyllic human colony, "I wasn't expecting to find the Geth here Saren… the situation's bad."

His mentor's voice rang out soothingly, "Don't worry Nihlus… I have it under control."

The last thing he saw as he made to turn was muzzle flash of a pistol fired at point blank range and the glittering blue eyes of his friend.

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**-Commander Rachel Shepard-**

As they made their way up a short hill the sound of a gunshot rang out over the silent colony. It wasn't that it was gunfire, no, it was that it was a single shot, that sent a feeling of urgency tearing through Rachel's body as her pace quickened and her grip tightened on her gun.

Behind her Hudson and Fabray moved to flank her, guns at the ready as she ordered, "Prepare for contact…"

They didn't reply but she could feel them behind her as their bodies coiled and they gripped their weapons.

As they came to a metal platform the same ship from before made a loud, almost growling sound as red electricity arched from its struts as it lifted up into the air, looming overhead even as Hudson muttered "Look at the size of that thing…"

Behind him Fabray demanded, "What the hell kind of ship is it?"

Rachel ignored them as she took in the Geth milling around down below on the platforms before ordering, "Fabray take the one at my twelve, Hudson spray them, and I'll light up those explosive canisters. On my mark."

Her hand glowed with a heavy warp as she waited for Fabray's muscles to tense, "Mark!" As soon as the word left her lips Fabray's gun fired a pinpoint round which blew the flashlight off one of the Geth while Rachel hurled the warp at the explosive canisters, triggering a chain reaction that caught three other Geth with heavy shrapnel. Hudson's spray of bullets finished off whatever life may have been left in the synthetics.

Rachel nodded firmly and then a tint of red caught her eye. Another shelter sat just in the distance with the same red glow at the door, speaking to the encryption seal that had been placed upon it. As she took a step towards no doubt more survivors Fabray's voice rang out.

"Husks Commander!"

Rachel brought her pistol around sharply and was nearly flattened as one of the things charged her. She realized almost too late that they were powered by some sort of electricity as the thing flashed and suddenly her shields dropped. It was nearly on her when the butt of Fabray's sniper rifle was brought around like a baseball bat to smash into the husk's head, popping it like a watermelon. The husk dropped as Rachel opened fire on the one that was a little further off, Hudson sprayed the thing as their bullets ripped through it.

Once Rachel was sure there were no more of the things lurking around she turned to Fabray and nodded, "Thank you Chief."

Fabray dipped her head, "Welcome Ma'am."

Rachel pointed towards the shelter, "That way."

She picked her way through the burning crates that were crackling near the shelter and Hudson moved forward without being asked to break the encryption.

The door hissed open and Rachel announced, "Alliance Military! Show yourselves!"

A voice rang out, "Nobody shoot! We're unarmed! We're coming out." The man's words finished just as he and two others stepped in the dwindling light of the colony's sun

The woman to his left asked breathlessly, "Is it safe? Are they gone?"

Rachel nodded shortly, "For now, we've taken care of the ones in the immediate area but I've no doubt there are more."

The man who'd spoken before spoke again, "Those things were crawling all over the shed, they'd have found us for sure." He rubbed the back of his neck and added, "We owe you our lives."

The woman to his left piped up, "When… I still can't believe it. That ship! When I saw it I thought for sure it was over, I was sure we were all dead."

The man added, "It showed up right before the attack. We knew it was trouble the second we saw it so those of us that could made a break for the sheds."

Rachel held out a hand to shake his, "Quick thinking kept you alive sir… and yes, that ship fairly radiates trouble doesn't it?" Five heads bobbed in agreement, three from the colonists and two from her squad. She asked after a moment, "Tell me everything you can remember about the attack."

The man, who was now the spokesmen for the three farmers, looked down and swallowed, "We were in the fields when we saw that ship, like we said trouble. So we ran for it." He looked miserable as he added, "I have no idea what happened to the rest of the crew."

The other man to his right threw up his hands, "They were by the garage when the attack started! No way any of them survived!"

The woman spun on him as tears welled, "You don't know that! If they made it into the garage they could have sealed it!"

The other two men shrugged at Shepard before the spokesman added, "To be honest we didn't see much, hard to when you're running for your life."

Rachel glanced up at the sky where the sky had lifted back into the air and then spoke, "Tell me more about the ship you saw."

The man shuddered, "Like I said, hard to see much when you're running, it set down over by the spaceport at first."

The woman tugged his sleeve, "Tell them about the noise Cole," She paled, "That awful noise."

Cole nodded vehemently, "Maker, yeah. It emitted some sort of signal as it came down. Sounded like the shriek of the damned to be honest, only…" He hesitated, "Only it was coming from inside your own head."

Rachel's brow furrowed before she turned to Hudson and Fabray, "What do you think? Jamming signal, sent out to block communications? It would explain why the damn channel cut off on the Normandy."

Cole shrugged, "Hell if I know, whatever it was though, it tore right through my skull, made it hard to think."

Rachel spoke, "Jamming signal for sure then… and a powerful one if it affects organics." She nodded to the three farmers, "Seal the door behind you and get back in the shelter, we'll send a retrieval team once the colony is cleared."

The man to Cole's right spoke as Rachel turned to go, "Hey Cole, we're just a bunch of farmers. These people are soldiers… maybe we should give them the stuff?"

Cole growled out, "Geez Blake! Learn when to shut up!"

Rachel turned back towards the group slowly, a frown now in place, "Have something to tell me Cole?"

He let out a heavy sigh as his hands when up in a universal sign of 'hey, don't blame me', "Some guys at the spaceport were running a small smuggling ring. Nothing major, and in exchange for a cut of the profits we let them store packages in our sheds."

Rachel's whole body tensed as she ground out, "Overlooking the fact that smuggling is illegal, for the moment, what kind of packages?"

Cole wrung his hands as he muttered, "I found a pistol, and I figured it would come in handy if those things came back, but you'll get more use out of it than we will."

Rachel took a step towards Cole and spoke in a low, even voice, "We are risking our lives for this colony… you're sure there isn't anything else that could help us out?"

Cole rubbed his neck again before admitting, "There's one more thing, I was gonna sell after all this was over but I figure you all deserve it more than any of us do."

As soon as Cole had handed over the gun and the mod Fabray stepped forward and demanded, "Who is your contact at the space port Cole! What's his name?" Her eyes glinted and for just a moment Rachel admired how hazel they really were.

Cole shook his head, "He isn't a bad guy, and I'm not getting him in trouble." He crossed his arms and added a little petulantly, "I'm not a snitch either."

Rachel mirrored his stance, "He might have something to do with this attack Cole, I need a name."

Cole sagged before replying, "Fine fine, his names Powell, he works the docks at the spaceport… if he's even still alive."

Rachel nodded curtly and ordered, "Back into the shelter and seal it up." She turned on her heel, readied her gun and made her way down the hill.

The made her way to where she'd blown the explosives and then moved up the steps to the landing with her gun held in front of her. Just ahead she could make out the shape of a body lying prone on the ground.

She moved slowly and just as it registered in her brain just who the body belonged to Hudson spoke up, "Commander… that's Nihlus."

Rachel let out a growl that wanted very much to explode into an angry tirade, complete with foot stomping and a storm out at the end, but her military training had cured her of much of her high strung tendencies. She rushed forward though and came to a halt over his body.

Hudson crouched next to him while Fabray spoke a little incredulously, "A Turian? You know him?"

Rachel nodded shortly as Hudson spoke, "He's a Spectre, he was with us on the Nor-" His words were cut off by a clanking sound from behind some crates that caused each of them to pull their weapons and whirl around, preparing to open fire, possibly on whatever had manage to catch Nihlus unawares enough to get shoot in the side of the head.

Rachel's finger had nearly squeezed the trigger when a human man's hands flew up as he yelled, "Wait don't shoot! Human! I'm human!"

Rachel let out a snarl, "What in hell are you doing sneaking around back there!"

The man gulped, "I'm sorry! I was hiding from those creatures." He touched his chest, "My name's Powell." He pointed just beyond them, at Nihlus as Rachel shared a dark look with Fabray, "I saw what happened to that Turian. The other one shot him!"

Rachel's head snapped to look at him, "You're say Nihlus was murdered by a Turian? Not the Geth?"

Powell nodded a little frantically, "The other one got here first, and he was waiting when your friend showed up. He called him Saren." He scratched his head, "I'm not positive, but I think they must have known each other. Your friend seemed to relax, he let his guard down. Then Saren… he killed him. He shot him in the side of the head. I'm just lucky he didn't see my behind the crates."

Rachel's voice trembled as she asked, "Where did this Saren go after he killed Nihlus?"

Powell pointed towards the steps that led down further into the colony, "He jumped onto the cargo train, and he's probably going after that damned Beacon. Everything's gone to hell since we dug that thing up. First that mother ship, then the attack! They killed everyone! If I hadn't been behind these crates I'd have been dead too!"

Rachel ignored his hysteria as she purred, "You're Cole's contact here on the docks aren't you, for the smuggling ring?"

He sputtered, "What? No! I mean… I mean what does it matter now? So I'm a smuggler, who cares? My supervisors dead, the crew is dead, it doesn't really matter now does it?"

Rachel hummed as she asked a little disinterestedly, "Right… anything hidden nearby that we could use against the Geth?"

He nodded eagerly, taking the bait, "A shipment of grenades came in last week! Nobody notices if a few small pieces go missing off the military orders."

Fabray's whole body went rigid as she fought against a roar, "You greedy son of a bitch! We're out here trying protect your sorry ass and all you can do is think about how to rip us off!?" She stepped forward aggressively as her fists clenched around her gun.

Powell's hands went up again as he back pedaled, "I never thought you'd actually need those grenades! Who'd want to attack Eden Prime? We're a bunch of farmers," His voice had a distinctly whiny quality to it now, "How was I supposed to know?"

Rachel placed a hand on Fabray's arm and then snapped, "Hand over the grenades."

He rushed to comply as he spoke, "Take'em! My smuggling days are over, I swear!"

Rachel handed the grenades over to Fabray who was still eying Powell murderously as she clipped them to her belt.

Rachel spoke in a low voice, "A lot of marines died today Powell, and those grenades could have come in handy. I'd think of a way to make amends." She turned to go before turning back to hiss, "And if I ever hear about you ripping off honest marines again? I'll send Chief Fabray here to put a couple of holes into you." She turned away from him, utterly dismissing the smuggler as she made her way back to Nihlus. She crouched down next to him and retrieved a small homing beacon from her belt and attached it to his chest. The least she could do was make sure his body was returned to Palaven.

She stood and nodded towards the stairs, "Let's go meet this Saren."

Hudson and Fabray fell into step behind her as she made her way towards the steps just a hail of gun fire exploded in front of them.

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